Fraud complaint prompts reminder

Queen Charlotte RCMP are reminding islanders to be careful about sharing personal information and to watch out for people asking for money, after a fraud complaint last week. Const. Ryder Birtwistle said the RCMP received the fraud complaint on Nov. 13. The victim had been advertising on the Craigslist website, and started talking to an unknown potential buyer. The seller disclosed details about their medical concerns, and the potential buyer then offered to help with the medical concerns, and said they would need travel money to come to Haida Gwaii. The victim sent the money, but they never arrived. Now the victim is out a substantial amount of money. Const. Birtwistle said there are many scam artists out there and a common theme is that they request money for potential services involving medical issues or loved ones in distress. He advised everyone to be extremely cautious about sharing information or sending money to people they don’t know. He also suggested that people check out a federal government website called phonebusters.com that describes some of the scams and how to keep yourself protected against fraud and identity theft. If anyone has been the victim of a similar scam, Const. Birtwistle said they should contact their nearest police detachment or phonebusters.com.